Tue, 14 Jan 2025 | BUSINESS SALE
Private equity firm Frontier Development Capital has exited from Chesterfield and Worksop-based Harry Needle Railroad Company.
The company, formed in 1999 by former paratrooper Harry Needle and which provides locomotive hire, storage and maintenance services, has been bought by Austrian rail contractor Swietelsky for an eight-figure sum.
The deal will enable Needle to realise his majority share in the business while continuing in his role as managing director, and allow Swietelsky to expand its operations in the UK with the addition of a 15-acre facility in Worksop that is one of the largest of its type in the country.
Harry Needle’s main funder Frontier Development Capital will exit its investment.
Needle started out recovering spares from redundant rolling stock and went on to acquire a fleet of locomotives for hire. In 2019, with backing from FDC it acquired the derelict former rail depot in Worksop and invested £8 million to convert it into a complete operations centre.
The site, which has its own testing facilities, can accommodate up to 20 vehicles per week for repair, refurbishment, and maintenance. Together with its original site in Chesterfield, the company can offer storage for up to 700 railway vehicles.
Harry Needle now employs around 30 staff across the two sites and offers locomotive hire and storage services to manufacturers and operators including Alstom, Porterbrook and South Eastern. Since acquiring the Worksop site, it has grown turnover by 600 per cent.
Swietelsky, one of Austria’s leading construction companies, is also Europe’s largest privately-owned track maintenance contractor. It currently operates UK sites in Reading, Manchester and Glasgow through its joint venture with Babcock.
Jack Glonek, investment director at FDC whose investment in Harry Needle came from its Rail Supply Growth Fund, said: “Harry Needle Railroad Company was already successful but with the acquisition of the Worksop site, it began a new era that saw it become a leader in its field. It has been a privilege working with Harry and his team, supporting them with multiple investments and watching the business go from strength to strength.”
Needle said: “Over the past five years our business has grown to become a UK leader in rail support services. Joining forces with Swietelsky will give us the right structure and support to take it to the next level.”
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